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A recent cover story in the Canadian edition of Time trumpeted: Would anyone notice if Canada disappeared?The magazine asserted that Canadas influence in the world is shrinking fast and that something must be donenow. Jennifer Welsh, one of this countrys most visionary and accomplished young minds, has an intelligent and innovative plan of action to bolster our diminishing international status and build a coherent direction for the future. This strategy is unabashedly critical of worn-out national myths, yet radical enough to propose a rethinking of our role as global citizens. At Home in the World examines Canadas position, both present and future, within two spheres: that of North America and that of the wider world. It details the many challenges that our country faces, such as:

 Political complacency

 Pressures to continentalize

 The changing security landscape

 American global power

 The shake-up of our international institutions

Welsh also insists that our obsession for a healthy relationship with the United States cannot come at the expense of an international vocation. Canadians have long been instinctively globalat home in the worldand take their global rights and responsibilities seriously. Its time for our governments and policy-makers to reflect our confidence beyond our borders. Now, perhaps more than ever, an active global citizenship is required if Canada is to contribute to solving the worlds most pressing problems.

Product Description

From Amazon

Author and academic Jennifer Welsh loves Canada. She loves its people and its polarities, from the Prairies to the Maritimes. Its politics, however, are another story. Like a soccer mom cheering from the stands, Welsh dearly wants Canada to perform on the field with the smarts and passion she knows is bubbling just beneath the surface. But, she argues in At Home in the World: Canada's Global Vision for the 21st Century, Canada is missing the goal. The time has come for the country to seriously rethink its position at home and abroad if it hopes to be the kind of model global citizen Welsh is convinced it could be--and ultimately must be if it is to remain relevant. "This book calls for a new vision to guide Canadians in the twenty-first century, one that is rooted in our history and that draws on and develops our collective strengths," Welsh writes with characteristic frankness in her introduction. "I believe that the next generation of leaders, from all sectors of society, has the passions, skills, and ideas to craft a new script for Canada. Let's get on with the job."

With that, Welsh, a Canadian-born professor of international relations at Oxford University, details her plans for transforming Canada from middle power to mighty global player. Her suggested reforms are varied and wide-ranging, but you can bet a hefty chunk of that transformation begins with the United States. It's here the author is perhaps most effective, at once questioning our reflexive belief that we are (or should be seen as) America's best friend, while examining exactly what freight that designation carries. She also confronts common Canadian misconceptions about America: "You could argue, quite ironically, that the Bush administration has invested more time in the UN than any administration of the past twenty years. When did Madeleine Albright dedicate three hours before the UN Security Council arguing for intervention in Kosovo ... as Colin Powell did over Iraq?" As with many such scholarly tomes, the reader is inclined to wonder, "Well, if it's that obvious, why isn't the country just doing it already?" Why has our military been allowed to atrophy? Why hasn't the UN undergone the kind of reform obviously necessary in a post 9/11 (as opposed to a post-World War II) world? Regardless, At Home in the World raises germane questions about Canada's future--and future prosperity--in more accessible language than one might expect from an intellectual such as Welsh. There is no faulting that. --Kim Hughes

Review

It has become commonplace to note that Canadas role in the world is much diminished. The Canadian economy is heavily dependent on trade with the U.S., which accounts for more than 80 per cent of Canadas exports, close to a third of Canadas Gross Domestic Product. Yet our relations with our major trading partner are a continual source of national angst, from the Council of Canadians and its many allies in the chattering classes, fearful that we are too far under the U.S. thumb, to neo-cons, anxious that we dance more prettily to Washingtons tune. Jennifer Welsh, a Canadian-born lecturer in international relations at the University of Oxford, offers a different vision. Hers is of a Canada that seeks to be a confident, model citizen in the world, sharing our values in the name of global development. Canada should promote democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Welsh eschews what she sees as the impossible task of becoming Americas best friend, less from a reluctance to move too close to the U.S. than a realisation that it is simply a flawed vision. The U.S. does not see Canada as an important player on the world stage, though it does have common security interests. Other powers are much larger in Americas international calculations. The U.S. may be interested in increasing continental economic integration, but, Welsh argues, there is simply no desire to pursue the political integration that lies at the heart of the European Union project. Welsh succinctly notes: When placed alongside the European Unions Rome Treaty, the preamble to NAFTA looks like a contract between a new homeowner and his mortgage lender. No single power dominates the European Union but any similar venture in the Americas would immediately run up against the extraordinary weight of the worlds only superpower. Welsh rejects the argument that we need some grand bargain with the U.S. that could involve measures respecting security and a continental energy plan. She favours, instead, continuing efforts to strengthen Canadian relations with key individuals and institutions that might serve to advance Canadas trade agenda. The continuing U.S. use of tariffs and other trade restrictions in softwood lumber, steel and agriculture is a major irritant. Welsh suggests that no grand bargain is likely to resolve these issues that are driven by U.S. protectionist interests. More aggressive use of the World Trade Organisations dispute resolution mechanisms can provide some mitigation. There is a certain breathless naiveté in Welshs reading of Canadian politics, a willingness to confuse the apparently well-meaning statements of politicians with facts. Readers may be surprised to find that with the arrival of a new prime minister, national priorities are starting to take shape. The top two are securing Canadas social foundations, particularly in the realm of health care, and reforming democratic decision-making. In reality, beyond throwing more money into the system, there is no sign that the government has any agenda to address the increasing disparity between health care inputs and health care quality. Patronage remains a driving principle in Martins Ottawa, while tackling the democratic deficit remains a sound bite, not a reflection of any substantive change. Welsh is equally credulous regarding Ottawas response to 9/11, an issue that might have been expected to absorb a lot more of the authors critical intelligence than it does. Canada, Welsh urges, should resist any suggestion that it has failed to take counterterrorism seriously, pointing to Canadas 1996 decision to place immigration control officers at airports to prevent travellers with false documents from entering Canada. In fact, Canadas borders remain extraordinarily porous. The dependence on locally recruited staff, the large role given to lawyers in the immigration and refugee determination process, and the pervasive failure to remove failed claimants and even those convicted of serious criminal offences ensure that Canada remains a hospitable destination for terrorists (and international criminals). In contrast to Welshs optimistic assurances, William Bauer, a former ambassador and member of the Immigration and Refugee Board, warned the Canadian Senate, five years after the introduction of the stepped up security measures: You were told that when a person arrives in Canada there will be a security check up front. Sixty per cent of the people arriving on our doorstep claiming refugee status have either no documents or false documents. We do not know who they are. How can you do a security check on someone who is probably using a false name? You cannot. Welsh believes Canadas immigration and refugee determination system is a source of strength. Bauer, winner of the Raoul Wallenberg Humanitarian Award, has called Canadas refugee policies a massive corruption of the noble concept of political asylum. The optimistic assumptions Welsh makes about Canada, including that national cohesion is reasonably robust, no doubt encourage her ambitious agenda for the worlds model citizen. This involves taking a leading role in reforming the UN, though in the wake of the organisations failures in the Balkans, Rwanda, Sudan and the ongoing evidence of systemic corruption in the oil-for-food program, there might seem to be more promising candidates. The reform challenge may be more marked if Welshs suggestion that membership in international bodies should be conditional on conformity with basic human rights principles is applied. This would certainly cut the UN down to a more manageable size, but it contrasts with Welshs earlier proposal that the permanent members of the Security Council should include representatives from the League of Arab States and the African Union. Neither organisation is likely to have many members if human rights principles are taken into account. Welsh offers an idealistic vision of Canada both at home and in the world. In the current international climate we should be asking whether a more muscular response might not be required. Martin Loney (Books in Canada) -- Books in Canada

Most helpful customer reviews

Jennifer Welsh's contribution to this often ignored topic of Canada's future in foreign policy is very important. She brings a three dimensional approach to the discussion and the best work of the book is on the realistic and very pragmatic discussion of the role Canada should play with the US. The missing thrust to her view on using leverage in negotiation is for Canada to strongly promote the oil reserves in Canada (2nd in the world ahead of Iraq and Kuwait) to the US suggesting using a fraction of the cost of securing the Middle East to developing better ways to extract the oil from heavy sands would make this a far superior approach to supplying the US with oil. This would give Canada great trade leverage. Where Jennifer fails badly is her view on the military and strengthening it. Even her afterword defense is weak and the book index doesnt even have General Rick Hillier in it. This exposes Jennifer's academic and remote view of the situation. Nonetheless, a very valuable book for all.

Dr. Welsh demonstrates a connectedness to her country that can only be achieved by viewing it from a distance. This nexus generation look at foreign relations offers much more hope than the usual propoganda. The theory of being an exemplar as a country has historical backing and we can embrace it as part of our own lives. Jennifer shifts from a macro view to a micro explanation seamlessly and captures a direction for this century - a way home. This should be on Pierre Pettigrew's nightstand and a must for polisci and international students.

Jennifer Welsh is clearly a very intelligent woman, and she makes some good points in her book. However, what Canada's role in the world should be is a very controversial topic at this point in history, because the world is in the process of shifting from a unipolar to a multipolar distribution of power.In the year 2000, few people would have been able to predict the bizarre string of events which started with September 11, 2001 and the equally bizarre American reaction to this attack. Benjamin Barber had correctly predicted a "Jihad vs. McWorld"; Michael Adams had correctly predicted that the US would continue to drift toward right-wing Christian evangelism. But the way all of this has played out in the attack on Iraq and the response to this attack around the world was arguably impossible to accurately foresee.Canada is left in the difficult position of being tied to the United States in terms of economics, while being tied to Western Europe in terms of its postmaterialist values (cf. Jeremy Rifkin's European Dream).The fundamentalist Muslim threat is real. However the evangelical Christian threat is also real. Both groups are keen on seeing the world as being engaged in an apocalyptic "Clash of Civilizations", an interpretation hard to believe and even harder to desire for Canadians and Europeans whose values continue to progress, rather than to regress to religious barbarism.Jennifer Welsh wants our future course to "be rooted in our history". Unfortunately history is not necessarily a reliable guide in a time of paradigm shift.Historically Germany was "the bad guy" but this is clearly no longer the case. And historically, at least from Canadians' perspective, the US was the good guy.Read more ›

Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)

Amazon.com:
2 reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Model CitizenOct. 11 2004

By
Robert McInnis
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover

Dr. Welsh demonstrates a connectedness to her country that can only be achieved by viewing it from a distance. This nexus generation look at foreign relations offers much more hope than the usual propoganda. The theory of being an exemplar as a country has historical backing and we can embrace it as part of our own lives. Jennifer shifts from a macro view to a micro explanation seamlessly and captures a direction for this century - a way home. This should be on Pierre Pettigrew's nightstand and a must for polisci and international students.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Working from outdated assumptionsJan. 13 2005

By
sean s.
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover

Jennifer Welsh is clearly a very intelligent woman, and she makes some good points in her book. However, what Canada's role in the world should be is a very controversial topic at this point in history, because the world is in the process of shifting from a unipolar to a multipolar distribution of power.In the year 2000, few people would have been able to predict the bizarre string of events which started with September 11, 2001 and the equally bizarre American reaction to this attack. Benjamin Barber had correctly predicted a "Jihad vs. McWorld"; Michael Adams had correctly predicted that the US would continue to drift toward right-wing Christian evangelism. But the way all of this has played out in the attack on Iraq and the response to this attack around the world was arguably impossible to accurately foresee.Canada is left in the difficult position of being tied to the United States in terms of economics, while being tied to Western Europe in terms of its postmaterialist values (cf. Jeremy Rifkin's European Dream).The fundamentalist Muslim threat is real. However the evangelical Christian threat is also real. Both groups are keen on seeing the world as being engaged in an apocalyptic "Clash of Civilizations", an interpretation hard to believe and even harder to desire for Canadians and Europeans whose values continue to progress, rather than to regress to religious barbarism.Jennifer Welsh wants our future course to "be rooted in our history". Unfortunately history is not necessarily a reliable guide in a time of paradigm shift.Historically Germany was "the bad guy" but this is clearly no longer the case. And historically, at least from Canadians' perspective, the US was the good guy. However, according to a recent poll in Time Canada (November 1, 2004), Canadians now see the US more as "World Bully" (54%) than as "World police officer" (37%).Where do Canadians go from here? Not at all obvious.